


5 AM is not a good time to bake a cake

by clownprinceofcats



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, New Dangan Ronpa V3: Everyone's New Semester of Killing
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Healthy Relationships, Light Angst, M/M, Morning Cuddles, New Dangan Ronpa V3 Spoilers, One Shot, Post-Killing School Life (Dangan Ronpa), Recovery, Slow Build, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-01
Updated: 2019-11-01
Packaged: 2021-01-16 04:54:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,009
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21265391
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/clownprinceofcats/pseuds/clownprinceofcats
Summary: korekiyo and rantaro form an unlikely bond and attempt to recover from the trauma of the killing game





	5 AM is not a good time to bake a cake

**Author's Note:**

> I was going to write another YTTD fic but this is my favorite danganronpa ship and I feel like it deserves more love. Enjoy my own take on what I think they'd be like post-game!

It had been almost exactly one year after the killing game when Rantaro realized something spectacular; he could finally move on in life. Life after danganronpa had not been easy in the slightest. Despite being the first victim, Rantaro was still haunted by the memory of how intense the situation was. That and of course knowing that people he trusted ended up being murderers. It was unsettling hearing about how people snapped after he was gone. What happened to Kaede physically pained him to hear. Knowing Gonta was executed broke his heart. But the one he absolutely could not handle was Korekiyo. There was no way that the polite, soft-spoken Korekiyo he knew was the same person who had allegedly murdered Angie and Tenko in cold blood. 

Yet, here he was, living with that person. How that came to be is an interesting story.

After awaking from the simulation Rantaro had noticed that everyone was deliberately avoiding Korekiyo. Being as straight-forward as he was, he simply asked why. Kaede told him about what happened, and his blood ran cold. He couldn’t accept it as the truth. He had so much respect for Korekiyo, and he felt absolutely guilty for ever trusting him. 

He was about to confront Korekiyo angrily, asking him why he had lied about his true nature. Yet he noticed something perplexing. Korekiyo was calmly sitting on a bench outside of the hospital yet he didn’t present the demeanor of an apathetic psychopath. He looked… afraid…? 

Rantaro approached him and casually talked to him, hoping to calm his nerves. It worked, fortunately, and they began to converse. Rantaro found out that, like the others, Korekiyo had his past twisted by the mastermind. However, the others had pasts that didn’t affect their characters much. Korekiyo’s was disgusting. They made him, the victim in an abusive situation, consent to the abuse and GLORIFY it? That was his motive? Rantaro felt sick to his stomach hearing about the way Korekiyo was written to be in the game. Korekiyo told some of this with ease, yet there was pain in his eyes, as if tears he had been holding back for years were threatening to surface. He refused to talk about the trial or execution. Truthfully, Rantaro didn’t want to know. He didn’t want to have to imagine his friend in that pain. 

A month later they moved in together. Rantaro had convinced Korekiyo to get the therapy he desperately needed. They bonded again in an attempt to heal together. Korekiyo stopped covering his face and he cut his hair, as it was a reminder of the past. Rantaro washed his hair for him when he didn’t want to take baths. Whether the fear of water was from previous trauma or regarding the execution, Rantaro didn’t know. But it didn’t matter one bit to him. He wanted to see Korekiyo heal by any means necessary. 

They lived relatively peacefully for quite a while, both starting college and planning future trips together. That one-year anniversary of no despair came around and Rantaro didn’t see it coming at all. That’s why when he awoke to the smell of chocolate at five in the morning on a Sunday, he was beyond puzzled. 

Rantaro languidly walked out of his room to the kitchen where the delicious smell was coming from. There he saw Korekiyo, in his pajamas, sitting at the kitchen counter and meticulously frosting a chocolate cake. He looked so incredibly focused that Rantaro couldn’t help but laugh a bit. The sudden noise caused Korekiyo to jump, dropping the small spatula onto the floor.

“What are you doing?” Rantaro asked, gesturing to the cake with only his eyes. Korekiyo glared. 

“You scared me.”

“You didn’t answer my question.”

Korekiyo sighed. “It has officially been a year since awakening from the simulation and I wanted to celebrate.”

Rantaro’s eyes widened a bit. “Oh, you remembered the date?”

“Yes.”

“And you’re making a cake? Are you gonna get our old class together?” Rantaro inquired with a tilt of his head.

“Absolutely not. This is only for us,” Korekiyo replied while picking up the spatula and wiping the icing off the wooden floor. 

“Really? Thanks,” Rantaro smiled. “I love your baking. I can’t wait to try it.”

A faint blush dusted Korekiyo’s cheeks as he still was not used to compliments. 

“Ah… well in that case, you may have some now,” He replied, grabbing a knife to cut the cake.

A while back, seeing him with a knife would have made Rantaro a bit nervous, considering his poor mental health. But Korekiyo had earned a considerable amount of trust over the past 12 months, as he had been nothing but gentle and cautious. 

He cut the cake neatly and served Rantaro a piece. 

“Thank you,” Rantaro said while turning on the lights. How in the world did Kiyo bake with only one small light to guide him?

They both sat and ate in silence.

“This is quite the party,” Rantaro stated, earning a small laugh from Korekiyo. 

“You know I wake up early. I know it’s dark and quiet, but I find it relaxing.”

“Yeah, that makes sense,” Rantaro agreed while finishing his cake. “Thanks a lot, that was amazing. I’ll probably have some for lunch.”

“You’re very welcome. Going back to bed?” Korekiyo asked while washing their plates directly after finishing the food, a typical habit of his. His cleanliness was impressive.

“Nah, I might as well stay up. Besides, I don’t want to leave you alone,” Rantaro fell back onto the couch and picked up the TV remote. 

“You’re awfully considerate. May I join you?”

“Of course.” Rantaro almost responded sarcastically since Kiyo always asked the same thing, but he caught himself after realizing how much he respected the request of consent. 

Korekiyo sat next to him on the sofa, the only thing illuminating the room being the flat screen television that Rantaro had generously provided. Rantaro turned on The Office at a relatively low volume and looked over at his friend. 

“Hey, do you want hugs?”

Korekiyo smiled a bit and climbed in front of Rantaro without a word. Rantaro wrapped his arms around him and leaned back against the couch. They did this often; watching TV while cuddling. Rantaro discovered early on that Korekiyo likes to be the little spoon despite being the taller one. He was okay with affection if it was from Rantaro, which made Rantaro feel incredibly honored. Korekiyo was touch-starved for multiple reasons. First being his PTSD, of course. Second being other mental illnesses. But mostly, he just wasn’t a touchy person. When it came to Rantaro, however, he would hardly ever deny hugs.

They sat together for an hour or so, laughing from time to time at the show. It wasn’t until Korekiyo pulled away momentarily to readjust that Rantaro realized he had been holding his hand. Who had initiated it was beyond him. Rantaro was a bit flustered but didn’t mention it. That was, until his hand was grabbed again. 

“Um… are you cold?” was Rantaro’s smooth comeback.

Korekiyo shook his head. “Is this alright? Your hand is very warm and comfortable”

Rantaro quickly nodded. “Yeah. It’s totally fine.”

They went back to watching the show but in the slight reflection in the screen Rantaro couldn’t help but think about how they resembled a happy couple. He quickly shook the thought out of his mind.

“Are you alright?” came Kiyo’s soft voice out of nowhere. Curse him and his inhuman ability to read emotions and thoughts.

“I’m okay.”

“Are you certain? You seemed to tense up a bit suddenly.”

Rantaro sighed. “It was just an intrusive thought.”

Korekiyo quickly shot up to look at him, a distinct look of concern in his light eyes. “Are you alright? Is it a bad memory?”

Rantaro smiled a bit at how quick Korekiyo was to ask about his well-being. “Nothing like that. I was just thinking… aren’t we a bit like a couple?”

Korekiyo blinked a few times. “A couple…? How so?”

Rantaro instantly regretted his words. “Y’know how couples will cuddle and hold hands and stuff?”

“Yes, but can’t friends do that as well?”

“Yeah, you’re right. I was just kidding,” Rantaro replied, relieved that Kiyo didn’t seem offended or weirded out.

“I love you, Rantaro. It doesn’t matter what way I love you in, because regardless I will hug you.”

On one hand he was right. On the other hand Rantaro’s brain went ‘Of course which way you love me matters! What the hell does that mean!?’

He decided, as usual, to speak his mind. 

“Hey… Kiyo?”

“Yes?”

“What if you liked me as more than a friend?”

“What if?”

Rantaro rolled his eyes at his friends’ passive-aggressive nature. “No, I mean like… what would happen?”

“Wouldn’t that be up to you?” Korekiyo asked while looking back into Rantaro’s eyes. Damn it, he had a point again.

“I mean… we could still be friends. I wouldn’t be weirded out,” Rantaro finally answered.

“Really?”

“Yes.”

“In that case, I like you in a gay way.”

Rantaro snickered. “I know you like some boys but not me.”

Korekiyo frowned a bit. His expressions were never very animated. “why would I not like you?”

Rantaro thought about it. “Well… for one, I’m calm like you are. Wouldn’t you like someone more upbeat?”

Korekiyo shook his head. “That would overwhelm me. Your presence is calming.”

Rantaro almost thought of more arguments before he realized something horrifying. Korekiyo wouldn’t joke about that. He does joke around sometimes; he has a light-hearted (though sometimes cursed) sense of humor. But regarding relationships, Korekiyo was nothing but serious. 

“Um… Kiyo?”

“Yes?”

“Do you actually like me?”

Korekiyo quickly averted his gaze. He couldn’t lie to Rantaro. Rantaro was honest and deserved honesty in return. 

“Perhaps.”

“Perhaps? Just perhaps.”

Korekiyo looked almost… angry…? It scared Rantaro a bit. He had never seen him angry. It seemed so unnatural.

“Why does it matter? I can’t be in a relationship. I still can’t function well. I’ll never be normal. And no one can know about my past, even if it didn’t technically happen. Even the things that DID happen are horrible. I don’t deserve to have feelings for someo- “ 

“Hey, stop,” Rantaro calmly interrupted his rambling. “You deserve love, okay? What happened wasn’t your fault. You’re not a bad person and I’ve never seen you as one. And yeah, I wouldn’t say you could be in a relationship currently because you have some stuff to work through. But who cares if you’ll never be normal? You’ll eventually find love, and your weirdness is what makes you so fun to be around.”

Korekiyo sniffled a bit and gently hugged Rantaro. “I’m sorry… I’m so scared of rejection…”

“No apologies. I’m here for you no matter what. And it’s okay if you like me. I’m not bothered by that. And hey, maybe given some time I might grow to like you too.”

Korekiyo made a noise that sounded like a cat hiccupping. “H-huh? You… wh- …wait… you’re not gay!!” 

“I know! But the thought of dating you doesn’t repulse me. And… you look pretty girly. Even with your hair short.”

Korekiyo tried to glare, but he was so shocked that he couldn’t do it convincingly. “That is true but… thank you. I won’t force anything onto you.”

“I know you won’t,” Rantaro smiled gently. “You’re very respectful and it’s why I trust you. Let’s just give it some time and see how things work out once we’re both a bit more recovered, yeah?” he said, not wanting to single out Korekiyo for being the more problematic one. And truth be told, Rantaro did still need help.

“That sounds good,” Kiyo agreed. He felt hopeful for once, as if nothing bad could happen. He was safe, and he was loved. He wiped his tears with the blanket he had been bundled in and looked back at Rantaro. “For now, may we stay in this position but with more cake?”

“We absolutely can.”


End file.
